Aasra Suicide Prevention.This blog is about getting people to talk about their innermost feelings and emotions in times of distress and despair.All discussions are about the issue of suicide, mental health and it's effect on society.
Aasra Helpline for the depressed and suicidal. 91-22-27546669(24x7)

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Aruna Shanbhag is a nurse from Haldipur, Uttar Kannada, Karnataka in India. In 1973, while working at King Edward Memorial Hospital, Parel, Mumbai, she was sexually assaulted by Sohanlal Bhartha Walmiki, a ward boy at the hospital.[1] Walmiki was motivated partly by resentment for being ordered about and castigated by Shanbaug.[2][3]Contents[hide]

On the night of 27 November 1973 Walmiki attacked her while she was changing clothes in the hospital basement. He choked her with a dog chain and sodomized her. The asphyxiation cut off oxygen supply to her brain resulting in brain stem contusion injury and cervical cord injury apart from leaving her cortically blind.[4]

The police case was registered as a case of robbery and attempted murder on account of the concealment of anal rape by the doctors under the instructions of the Dean of KEM, Dr. Deshpande, perhaps to avoid the social rejection of the victim.[5] Walmiki was caught and convicted, and served two concurrent seven-year sentences for assault and robbery, not for rape or sexual molestation, nor for the "unnatural sexual offence" (which could have got him a ten-year sentence by itself).[edit] AftermathSee also: Euthanasia in India

Since the assault, she has been in a vegetative state. On 24th January 2011, the Supreme Court of India responded to the plea for euthanasia filed by Aruna's friend journalist Pinki Virani, by setting up a medical panel to examine her.[6]. However, it turned down the mercy killing petition on 7th March, 2011. The court, in its landmark judgement, however allowed passive euthanasia in India.[edit] Nurses' strike

Following the attack, nurses in Mumbai went on strike demanding improved conditions for Shanbaug and better working conditions for themselves.[3] In the 1980s the BMC made two attempts to move Shanbaug outside the KEM Hospital to free the bed she has been occupying for seven years. KEM nurses launched a protest, and the BMC abandonned the plan.[7][edit] Aruna's Story

A book titled Aruna's Story has been written by Pinki Virani about the case while Vinay Apte and Duttakumar Desai wrote the Marathi play, Katha Arunachi.[8][edit] References

12/17/2009 16:31INDIAIndia split over euthanasia in a case involving a woman in coma for the past 36 yearsby Nirmala CarvalhoThe case of Aruna Shanbhag, 59, sparks a heated debate across India. For writer Pinki Virani, stop feeding and giving the patient water would be a humanitarian act, not euthanasia. India’s Supreme Court says, “Under the law of the country, we cannot allow a person to die.” For Mgr Dabre, a “culture of death” is increasingly taking hold in India.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) – A request to stop giving food and water to a 59-year-old coma patient is generating a heated debate across India. The woman, Aruna Shanbhag (pictured), was a nurse at the King Edward Memorial Hospital (KEM) in Mumbai when she was raped in 1973. As a result of the traumatic event, she went into a coma, without relatives to care for her. In a permanent vegetative state for the past 36 years in the same hospital where she worked, she has been cared for and fed by hospital nurses.

An attorney, Shekhar Nafde, has petitioned the court on behalf of writer Pinki Virani, who wrote about Aruna Shanbhag, to allow Aruna to die. Nafde explained that the request could not be construed as a plea for euthanasia. "This is no human right," he said. "Her life is worse than animal existence."

Euthanasia is illegal in India but the Aruna Shanbhag’s case and Pinki Virani’s request are causing a stir in the country.

Public opinion is divided between those who say that withdrawing food does not constitute euthanasia and those who believe that it would set a dangerous precedent and could lead euthanasia being treated as a humanitarian act.

In responding to the petition, the Supreme Court issued a notice, saying, “Under the law of the country, we cannot allow a person to die.”

Mgr Thomas Dabre, bishop of Pune and president of the Bishops’ Commission on Doctrine, welcome the Court’s statement recognising that the dignity of human life is not determined by a person’s physical condition.

Speaking to AsiaNews, the prelate did not hide his real concern about the case raised by Virani, because there are “dangerous trends in [Indian] society”.

For the bishop of Pune, support for euthanasia contradicts “Indian Scriptures and Indian traditions, [which] have for centuries propagated the values of life and [. . .] stood for [its] preservation”.

For Mgr Dabre, the fight for the right to die shows that man today “considers suffering as evil.” For him, “It is most unfortunate that medical and technological advances are used to end life.”

More importantly, “It is specious to argue that ending [Aruna Shanbhag’s] life, when persons are in such a state, is a manifestation of mercy and respect for the person”.

For Pascoal Carvalho, a physician and a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life, the request to suspend treatment plays on two ambiguous notions, namely that food and water constitute a special form of healthcare, and that the request itself is not about euthanasia.

“As our society progresses toward a culture of death, the so-called ‘right-to-die’” could become “an obligation-to-die,” involving “for example, anyone who believes that they are a burden to someone else—either financially or otherwise.” Instead, “Life is valuable from its beginning to natural end,” he explained.Aruna Shanbaug story

’I met a big learned pujari who said I had a sau mein ek patrika [a rare horoscope], that I’d be a success, will live long & would go abroad..... but even if he was talking rubbishit does not matter because I know that I will become known in my field’’ Aruna Shanbhag, a ambitious & dynamic 25-year-old girl with a fulfilling profession uttered these words whilst talking to her cousin about her plans to pursue her dreams of studying abroad. Little did she know that what waits for her is something so unimaginable, a future so horrid that even the best of pujari wouldn’t look forward to predicting!

Soon she was to be cortically blind & without speech, she would lose the use of her limbs & the control of her muscles. Her brain would be partially dead but a part of her brain as a sly survivor would be alive, this part would also experience pain.... she would suffer from atrophying bones, the joints at her fingers, her wrists, knees, ankles would bent inwards & to try straightening them would cause her pain. She would suffer emotional trauma, so much that it would result in inappropriate laughter & bouts of screaming. Her memory & most of her other mental faculties would also be gone. Aruna would continue to live in this neither-alive-nor-dead existence, reacting to stimuli yet unable to otherwise communicate..... she has now been like this for the past 30 years.

Aruna’s ki kahaniThe story of Aruna Shanbhag, begins at KEM hospital where she is working as a staff nurse. Focused, eager to learn & efficient with her work she has excellent prospects of working her way to the top in her chosen field. She has chosen this career defying her family & has bravely achieved her dreams in a new city, without any influences. Unlike the seedhi saadi village belles Aruna is frank & fastidious in temperament, a senior nurse nicknamed her as Chatak Chandni [a little moon, whose rays can give an electric shock] while her room mate called her a good hearted girl but with a ’’muscle in her mouth’’! Being pretty to look at, it doesn’t take long for Aruna to attract the eligible doctors in her work place, one of whom she falls in love with & the two decide to get married.

Aruna has recently been posted in the dog surgery research laboratory, where Sohanlal a temporary cleaner often behaves arrogantly, he is rough with the dogs, dragging them along with their chains & he also steals the dog food. As she is responsible for the department Aruna doesn’t hesitate to pinpoint Sohanlal’s mistakes, warns him to keep to his limits or he would lose his job. Despite several warnings Sohanlal continues with his behaviour & also ill talks about Aruna, leaving her no choice but to report him to her senior. Just around the same time she also announces her wedding plans & her going on a leave. The very same evening Sohanlal decides to take his revenge on the bride to be. As he attacked & raped her, he also choked her with a dog chain cutting off oxygen supply to parts of her brain thus depriving her not only her dignity but of the power to express herself or to live a normal life.

As she slips into coma & struggles to survive, Sohanlal is convicted but just for a seven-year concurrent sentence for assault & robbery. Had he been convicted for rape Sohanlal would have to serve a 10-year sentence too. However, the KEM doctors did not report the crime to the police, to spare Aruna & her fiancé the pain of such a public exposure, as they were to be married soon. To make matters worse for Aruna, her family is not supportive at all, even to the extent of refusing to hand over her case to the hospital. The only people who come to her aid are her colleagues & staff of KEM, who till date continue to look after the 55 year old permanently bed-ridden Aruna.

Yes, Aruna Shanbhag became well known in her field, after her tragedy India faced it’s first nurse’s strike demanding protection & proper treatment for Aruna with better working conditions in Bombay’s municipal hospitals.

=======================================================

The Author/Book:Journalist Pinki Virani is the author of three books -- Aruna’s Story, Once was Bombay & Bitter Chocolate - all of which are nonfiction books confronting uncomfortable subjects. In her note she tells us about the reason of why she decided to carry this ’assignment of 75,000 words’; after a stupendous response to her little article about the rape victim, Virani was asked to write more about Aruna. Unsure of how she would get the details after so many years, she set out to investigate further & on learning that the rapist didn’t even serve for rape, Virani decided to recreate this real life tragedy of Aruna’s brutalization, through painstaking & relentless research. It was also decided that half the royalties from the book will go towards Aruna’s continued care & treatment & after her death, to a nursing school.

The book is structured into three segments where in the first segment Virani with her imagination narrates the horrendous incident with utmost care as not to make it into a bollywood rape scene that we all are so accustomed to by now. Thereafter we read the immediate repercussions in vivid details of how she was found, what she went through & a mind-blowing account of everyone’s reaction to her tragedy!

The second segment takes us back to Aruna’s early adulthood, this is where the reader gets to know the real Aruna; her personality, ambitions, her dreams & even her faults. Even as she reprimands the sweeper she herself is not ’obeying’ her superiors when she ignores their order not to use the dog laboratory change her uniform because it was conveniently close, unlike the regular nurses’ room. When her matron wonders if Aruna has been punished by God or is paying for her past life crimes, the reader is appalled because Aruna is just a normal human, who have tendencies to flout rules but surely she doesn’t deserve such a punishment for a minor mistake where people who have committed far worse crime make a clean getaway. With the imaginary dialogues between senior & young nurses, Virani tries to tell a warning tale to the young working women who may face personal dangers due to their behaviour, which would be perceived as ’’brashness’’ in the male world. Even though most of the conversations & descriptions come from the author’s imagination, Virani appears to be partial to some characters like Dr. Sardesai who finally abandons Aruna to marry elsewhere & one can sense her intense hate for Sohanlal, given his ghastly description [comparing him to an animal with the glittering eyes] makes one wonder if this hate was the reason there is no report on what happened to Sohanlal after his release.

The final segment talks more about the present situation, of the decay of the medical profession, hospital management & society. Here the book also looks in several issues from rape, the safety of working women to class-n-caste conflict & even euthanasia where Virani seems to wonder if Aruna was better off dead than to be in this continuous non-living state.

Aruna’s Story is simple yet gripping & thought provoking. It makes an interesting read, especially where it is peppered with lively anecdotes showing Aruna’s relation with her colleagues & her lover. It is evident that Virani has put her heart-n-soul in this book & if she could she would surely put life back in Aruna.

In an unexpected verdict, the Supreme Court on Monday opened the window to the “mercy killing” of terminally ill patients in hospital who have no hope of survival, even as a bench of Justices Markandey Katju and Gyan Sudha Misra dismissed the plea for mercy killing of a Mumbai nurse, who has been reduced to vegetative state in King Edward Memorial hospital for the past 37 years as her case did not fully meet the criteria laid down by the court.

The SC laid down comprehensive guidelines to process “passive euthanasia” till Parliament passes a law, while making a clear distinction between “active euthanasia”, which means ending the life of a patient by injecting medication and “passive euthanasia”, permitting doctors to withdraw life support to a terminally ill patient.

The apex court said there was no ambiguity in the law on “active euthanasia”, a crime under IPC sections 302 (murder), 304.

Shanbhag FIR never recorded sodomy

It has long been stated that Aruna Shanbhag had been sexually assaulted and sodomised by ward boy, Sohanlal Bhartha Walmiki.

But 37 years after the crime, her family now says there was never any sexual assault.

A member of the family said although Walmiki’s intention may have been to kill her, he did not sodomise her. A family member claims that Ms Shanbhag’s brother, Balakrishna Shanbhag saw the FIR of the case, and said the sodomy incident never happened.

Backstory

On Nov. 27, 1973, Aruna Shanbhag was working as a nurse at KEM hospital in Mumbai, when she was attacked by a ward boy. During the attack he choked her with a dog chain, cutting off blood supply to the brain leaving her in a vegetative state.

* 2 Comment (s) * Post your comment

Latest CommentsSubmitted by phanikumar on Tue, 08/03/2011 - 11:08pm.

I support euthanasia case of Aruna. All will say no to mercy killing, but no one will be ready to serve her. So better to go with her decision.

* reply

Submitted by hareeshramineni on Tue, 08/03/2011 - 6:21pm.

I don't know whether justice was done for Aruna Shanbaug or not. The man who was responsible for her situation was in jail only for 7 years, but she was in more pathetic situation for over 35 years. It was the mistake of Valmiki or the laws and judicial system we follow.

Euthanasia Doesn’t Cause Disproportionate Number of Deaths: Studyby Venkatraman on September 28, 2007 at 1:42 PM

Euthanasia Doesn’t Cause Disproportionate Number of Deaths: StudyA new study conducted by University of Utah in Oregon and the Netherlands found that legalizing physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia does not result in a disproportionate number of deaths among vulnerable people.

The “vulnerable groups” included elderly people, poor, women, minorities, uninsured, minors, chronically ill, less educated or psychiatric patients and AIDS patients. Out of these vulnerable groups, only AIDS patients used doctor-assisted suicide at elevated rates.

Led by bioethicist Margaret Battin, a University of Utah distinguished professor of philosophy and adjunct professor of internal medicine, the research deals with the so-called “slippery slope” argument that has been made by critics of doctor-assisted suicide and has raised concern even among proponents.

The argument is that by making it legal for medical doctors to help certain patients end their lives, vulnerable people will die in disproportionately large numbers.

“Fears about the impact on vulnerable people have dominated debate about physician-assisted suicide. We find no evidence to support those fears where this practice already is legal,” Battin said.

The study will be published in the October 2007 issue of the Journal of Medical Ethics.

The findings of the research came through when Battin and her colleagues looked at the places where physician-assisted suicide is legal.

The researchers analysed data on assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia in the Netherlands by taking data from four government studies and several smaller ones. They analysed Oregon Department of Human Services annual reports, and surveys of physicians and hospice professionals.

Australian Greens Leader Vows to Revive Euthanasia LawAustralian Greens leader Bob Brown said Wednesday he would lead a bid to reinstate overturned right-to-die legislation because it was a "civilising" law.

The national government overturned the legislation after nine months amid bitter debate about its ethical implications.

Brown said he would introduce a private members' bill to parliament next week and had written to new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd seeking a conscience vote on reinstating the law in the Northern Territory.

Euthanasia supporters hope it will pave the way for similar legislation in other parts of the country.

"My concern about the unnecessary suffering of terminally ill people who are denied a choice by politicians comes from my previous professional life as a doctor," Brown told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"And I think it's time that we accepted that this is important civilising legislation."

Ahead of his November 24 election, Rudd said he personally would vote against euthanasia legislation but it was the position of his centre-left Labor Party to grant members a conscience vote on such issues.

France Turned Down Disfigured Woman's Euthanasia PleaA French court on Monday rejected a request from a 52-year-old severely disfigured former schoolteacher for the right to die, in a case that has stirred much emotion in France, a judicial source said.

The high court in Dijon, eastern France, decided to side with the prosecution which argued that current legislation does not allow Chantal Sebire's doctor to prescribe lethal drugs.

In her appeal to the court, Sebire said she did not want to endure further pain and subject herself to an irreversible worsening of her condition. She asked the court to allow her doctor to help her end her life.

A mother of three who lives in the Bourgogne region of eastern France, Sebire drew a strong outpouring of sympathy when she appealed in a television interview last month for the right to "depart peacefully".

Before-and-after pictures of the woman, her face severely deformed, have been featured in the press and her account of frightened children who run away at the sight of her has drawn sympathy.

Sebire learnt in 2002 that she had developed an esthesioneuroblastoma, an uncommon malignant tumour in the nasal cavity, which she said has led to "atrocious" suffering.

"In 2000, I lost the sense of smell and taste ... and I lost my sight in October 2007," she said in the television interview.

"One would not allow an animal to go through what I have endured," she said before urging President Nicolas Sarkozy to intervene and grant her request.

Couples Requested Mercy-Killing For Their 11 Year Old Sonby priya on December 18, 2008 at 3:17 PM

Couples Requested Mercy-Killing For Their 11 Year Old SonParents of an eleven-year-old boy from Potka village in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand have sought euthanasia for their son Gulshan Munda.

Apart from approaching higher officials, the distraught parents have even approached the State Welfare Minister Joba Manjhi by contending that they just can't afford treating their son for his disease of sickle cell anaemia.

Gulshan's father Kalidas Munda lost his job six months ago, which made life tougher for the family to afford the treatment.

The boy needs blood transfusion since his birth and his monthly medicare bills touch a whopping figure of over rupees 5000, the average earnings of a skilled worker in Jharkhand.

Parvati, mother of Gulshan has been knocking at the doors of higher officials to give a green signal for the ultimate to her son.

Further she noted that it has become impossible for her husband, a daily wage earner to mobilise such an amount whereas the parents wish to free their son from pain and suffering.

"I want euthanasia for my child, as my husband does not have a job. We're poor and can't afford his treatment. The child is also suffering in pain," said Parvati.

However, the Sub Divisional Officer (SDO) of Chakradharpur believes that it is not legal to grant death or perform such kind of acts on a boy.

The SDO has offered some kind of assistance to the family on a note of optimism that their son can be saved.

http://www.medindia.net/news/Luxembourg-Backs-Euthanasia-Bill-45393-1.htmLuxembourg Backs Euthanasia BillThe Luxembourg parliament on Thursday supported a controversial bill to legalise euthanasia, which the Catholic head of state, Grand Duke Henri, is refusing to back.

The move came shortly after Pope Benedict XVI spoke of his "deep concern" over the proposed law as he met with Luxembourg's new ambassador Paul Duhr at the Vatican.

"I would like to take the opportunity of our meeting to express my deep concern about the text of the law on euthanasia and assisted suicide currently being debated by (Luxembourg's) parliament," said the pope.

At the end of a five-hour debate, the Luxembourg deputies approved the bill by 31 to 26 with three abstentions.

Before Luxembourg can become the third EU country to allow some form of euthanasia, after Belgium and the Netherlands, there are still some political and constitutional hurdles to be jumped.

Thursday's vote was the first reading as the bill has been substantially amended since it was initially approved by parliament in February, at the request of the upper house state council.

Once the parliament definitively backs the legislation, probably next March, it will be up to Grand Duke Henri to sign it into law.

However the Catholic monarch prompted a constitutional crisis earlier this month when he said his conscience would not allow him to approve and promulgate the law.

A recent survey found that a large majority of Luxembourgers disapprove of the Grand Duke's threat to block the euthanasia bill and are in favour of reducing his powers.

Is Euthanasia Justified?by Aruna on February 10, 2009 at 5:13 PMhttp://www.medindia.net/news/Is-Euthanasia-Justified-47335-1.htm

Is Euthanasia Justified?Eluana Englaro, the comatose accident victim at the center of a right-to-die drama gripping Italy, died Monday as lawmakers debated a bill to force doctors to restore her life support.

Health Minister Maurizio Sacconi made the announcement, carried on Italian television, to the Senate moments after the chamber began its debate on controversial emergency legislation aimed at keeping Englaro alive.

Doctors in Udine, northeast Italy, stopped feeding the 38-year-old woman on Friday amid a flurry of efforts to keep her alive, with conservative Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi accused of politicizing the affair.

The Vatican reacted swiftly to the news of Englaro's death, imploring God to "forgive" those responsible.

"May the Lord welcome her and forgive those who led her there (to her death)," the Vatican's health minister Javier Lozano Barragan told the ANSA news agency.

Englaro's father Beppino Englaro, who had battled for years for her right to die, asked to be allowed time on his own before speaking to reporters, the all-news channel Sky TG24 reported.

Berlusconi said he learned of Englaro's death "with deep pain," news reports said. "The bitterness is great that the government could not act to save a life," he said.

After observing a minute's silence, the senators nevertheless proceeded with their examination of the emergency decree issued by Berlusconi's cabinet on Friday, which, if passed, would have prevented doctors from withholding her food.

President Giorgio Napolitano had refused to sign the new law, which covers euthanasia and the rights of "persons not in a position to decide for themselves," and the lawmakers opted to continue their deliberations with an eye on potential future cases.

Euthanasia : ‘Merciful’ Termination'Should the physician ever speed the end and so reduce the patient's suffering? No. Custom, tradition, experience, social sanction, law, and religion are unanimous in this, and rightly so. Euthanasia would be a long step backward in civilization.' - Richard A. Kern, 1951

Euthanasia is defined as ‘the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependant human being for his or her alleged benefit’. It is also referred to as ‘mercy killing’. The word ‘Euthanasia’ takes its origin from the Greek words, ‘eu’ meaning ‘good’ and ‘thanatos’ meaning ‘death’.

Euthanasia is voluntary, when the subject puts forth a request seeking to end his life. If a surrogate, who is a close relative or a friend takes the decision on behalf of the individual, who is either too young or is mentally challenged, it is non voluntary euthanasia.

Involuntary euthanasia, on the other hand, is carried out on an unwilling individual.Assisted Suicide, which is also a form of mercy killing, takes place when a person, who intends to eliminate himself, is abetted by a third party, usually a doctor, who provides the guidance, to carry out the task effectively.

Euthanasia is propagated by its advocates, as a permanent solution for people tormented by chronic pain, and whose quality of life, and thereby dignity, is compromised. The advocates also point out, that people suffering from degenerative diseases like Huntingdon’s Chorea, AIDS, or Alzheimer’s, can attain ‘deliverance’ through euthanasia.

However, several theories are forwarded against these killings from various quarters. Brain washing a chronically- dependant person to resort to euthanasia, cost containment of health- care provided to terminally ill individuals, and the misuse of euthanasia by its perpetrators, are some of the reasons that euthanasia is not yet legalized in most countries.

The state of Oregon in the USA, The Netherlands, Belgium and Australia’s Northern Territory are some of the places where euthanasia and assisted suicide is permitted under law. In most countries, as in India, euthanasia is not legalized, although its passive version, like taking a ‘hopeless’ case off the life support system, is quite prevalent.

The reason for our entry into this world, and the purpose of each of our lives, is an enigma. Death, however, remains the greatest mystery. Are we justified in perpetrating an act that could take life? Are we justified in taking something that we could never ever give? These are some of the philosophical questions one has to weigh against the medical indications before accepting euthanasia for any patient. Every case has to stand on its own merit and it maybe perhaps best for an ethics committee that is independent of the hospital that takes the decision on an individual case rather than the medical practitioner.

Now put it, God, in the physician's mind To help him to his grave immediately!- Shakespeare, William. Richard II, act I, scene iv.

United Kingdom is being nudged by a Swiss organization to rework on the laws governing assisted suicide, or euthanasia, so that it can be considered for patients suffering chronic mental ailments and depression.

Dignitas, who has Ludwig Minelli at the helm, is petitioning the Swiss Supreme court to permit modifications in the law. Minelli said: "The question for politicians in Britain today is why do you force your citizens, people in the most terrible circumstances who are determined to end their suffering in a way of their own choosing, to leave their country and travel to Switzerland to exercise their free will."

Dignitas has been enjoying a walk through in Switzerland, primarily because Switzerland has not come down heavily on assisted suicide. The euthanasia laws are clear that a person can be accused only if the act is motivated by self-interest.

Dignitas is now helping a Swiss national suffering bipolar disorder. MEP Chris Davies expressed that it would certainly benefit if UK could take a leaf out of the Dutch books, and reconsider their laws on assisted suicide.

Pioneering Euthanasia law in Andalusia, SpainA pioneering euthanasia law which would allow terminally ill patients to refuse medical treatment and make it illegal to keep someone alive by artificial means is being readied by local government of Spain's southwestern region of Andalucia.

Under the text of the draft law, which will be put to a vote in the region's parliament, patients will have their "will and dignity" respected during the final stages of their lives, the socialist government of Andalucia said in a statement.

Patients will be able to "refuse or stop any treatment or medical intervention even if this could put their lives at risk" and will have the right to "receive treatment against pain, including palliative sedatives", it added.

Daily newspaper El Pais reported that, under the draft law, doctors who "apply useless and unjustified measures to prolong life" could face fines of between 60,000 euros to one million euros (87,000 and 1.4 million dollars).

The regional government of Andalucia has already taken pioneering steps in Spain when it comes to euthanasia.

In March 2007 it agreed with a 51-year-old woman's request to have a respirator which was keeping her alive turned off.

Inmaculada Echevarria had suffered from muscular dystrophy since childhood and been confined to a hospital bed for years.

Her case triggered debate in Spain on the rights of people with incurable diseases to seek help in dying.

Spain's regions have extensive powers in areas such as health and education.

Source-AFPRAS/S

Read more: Pioneering Euthanasia Law in Andalucia in Spain http://www.medindia.net/news/Pioneering-Euthanasia-Law-in-Andalucia-in-Spain-41398-1.htm#ixzz1G5MQS8ZX

http://www.medindia.net/health-survey/euthanasia.htm

Euthanasia survey by medindia

Euthanasia SurveyShare your views

Survey taken by medindia on behalf of Samina Mamajiwala. Please answer these few questions on Euthanasia. The survey is anonymous and totally confidential. The survey will help us understand the value of this novel medium in building new relationships.Survey on Euthanasia*Mandatory*1. Are Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide the same?YesNo*2. Euthanasia is never ethically justifiedStrongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*3. The principal moral consideration about euthanasia is the question of whether the person freely chooses to die or not.Strongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagree*4. There are some situations in which euthanasia should be legalStrongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*5. There are some situations in which I would be willing to participate in euthanasiaStrongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagree*6. Assisted Suicide is never ethically justifiedStrongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*7. There are some situations in which Assisted Suicide should be legalStrongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*8. Animals are put to sleep when they are suffering. We should do the same for humans - do you agree?Strongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*9. Is Physician Assisted Suicide morally justified?Strongly agreeAgreeNeutralStrongly disagreeDisagree*10. There should beA law-allowing physician assisted suicideA law-prohibiting physician assisted suicideNo law, leave it to physician-patient relationshipNo law, medical profession should provide guidelines*11. In the course of your medical practice, has a patient ever asked you to hasten his/her death?Had been asked to hasten deathHad not been asked to hasten death*12. If a terminally ill patient asked me to bring an end to his or her life, I would consider doing so if it were legal.Strongly agreeAgreeUndecidedStrongly disagreeDisagree*13. Do you think that euthanasia should be legalized in India?Strongly agreeAgreeUndecidedStrongly disagreeDisagree*14. If someone is surviving because of a life support machine, who do you think should decide when/whether the machine is turned off?PatientFamily or relativesThe physician*15. Do you think that people should be allowed to make a living will?YesNoCan't say*16. Do you think the government will pass a bill saying that Euthanasia with the patient's consent should be legalized?YesNoCan't sayPersonal DetailsName Gender * Male FemaleAge * Country * Ethnicity * Religion * Hindu Muslim Christian Others Marital status * Single Married DivorceeEducational Qualification* UG PG PhD Others Occupation * Email Privacy Policy**Comments

A court in Milan on Monday overruled a regional order barring area hospitals from halting a comatose woman's life support in a high-profile right-to-die case, a lawyer for the family told AFP.

"The tribunal annulled the administrative order, and it ordered the (Lombardy) region to apply the decision of the appeal court," Vittorio Angiolini said by telephone.

Eluana Englaro's father won a 10-year court battle with an appeal court ruling in November that allowed doctors to remove her feeding tube.

Authorities in Milan had already ordered all health personnel in the region not to carry out the action after a lower court ruling in September.

Englaro, 37, has been in a coma since a car accident 17 years ago.

"I can be nothing but satisfied," her father Beppino Englaro said of the ruling, speaking to the ANSA news agency.

Englaro is currently at a Catholic hospital near Milan where nurses have refused to cooperate in ending her life.

Bucking pressure from the Italian Catholic Church and the Vatican, a geriatric clinic in northeastern Udine has said it was prepared to oversee the mercy killing.

On Monday it said it would not make a definitive decision before next week.

"We are still checking the technical procedure," the clinic's deputy director Luciano Cattivello told ANSA, adding that deliberations would probably continue through the week.

Monsignor Angelo Bagnasco, the head of the Italian Catholic Church, reiterated its opposition to euthanasia on Monday, saying it was "necessary to reaffirm and guarantee ... the true right (to life) of every human person."

He added: "The right to life is indeed incontrovertible."

The withdrawal of feeding and hydration is "unacceptable euthanasia," he said.

A study conducted at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center shows that patient trust over their doctors would still be strong even if a law to legalize physician-assisted death were to be enforced in the near future.

The study is based on the results of a telephonic survey conducted among a group of 1,117 adults in the United States. The survey was designed to measure attitudes about physician aid in dying. The participants were required to rate their level of agreement or disagreement using a five-point scale.

The participants were questioned if they would trust their doctors less if they helped patients die. However, the question did not distinguish between physician-assisted suicide, where the physician helps a patient take his or her own life, and euthanasia, where the physician directly administers the lethal dosage.

Nearly 58%of those surveyed (both men and women) had a disagreeing opinion with only a very small percentage (20%) expressing that legalizing euthanasia would cause distrust by blurring the time-honored line between healing and harming.

The researchers have expressed caution that it cannot be taken for granted that legalizing physician-assisted death would not undermine trust in physicians for most people. Furthermore, physicians cannot remain casual, as it is very hard to sustain or regain patient’s confidence.

Controversial data with respect to euthanasia and patient trust have been obtained from different regions of the world. In conclusion, it might still be valuable to ban physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia for helping retain patient’s trust.

http://www.medindia.net/news/view_news_main.asp?x=10286Religious leaders come in the way of Euthanasia

The law which stated that doctors can give drugs to end the life of those who are terminally ill was blocked by the upper house of British parliament. The assisted dying bill of Britain was based on the law in US. It stated that doctors can prescribe lethal drugs to patients who are suffering unbearably and have less than six months to live. These drugs can be administered by the patients to themselves. But after a seven-hour debate, members of the unelected House of Lords rejected the bill. Initially the law was proposed by Lord Joel Joffe who is a human rights lawyer.

He said that doctors should not complacently watch a terminally ill patient suffering unbearably. Hence he and his fellow supporters said that these terminally ill people should have the right to end their suffering. But the religious leaders say that nobody has the right to take away their life. The opponents were Lord Alexander Carlile, a member of the opposition Liberal Democrats, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, Roman Catholic Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks. They voiced their opinions together and wrote an objection letter to the Times newspaper.

They also said that such a bill would be very dangerous to the most vulnerable in the society. On the other hand Dignity in Dying, the group that supports the law, showed three-quarters of people supported assisted dying. But in US Oregon is the only state that allows doctor-assisted suicide. Apart from this other countries such as Switzerland, Netherlands and Belgium have accepted and passed the assisted dying laws.

Read more: Religious Leaders Come In The Way Of Euthanasia http://www.medindia.net/news/view_news_main.asp?x=10286#ixzz1G5KkMjdm

http://www.medindia.net/news/view_news_main.asp?x=11074

Euthanasia should be legalised says ethics professor

The Professor of the London School of Medicine and Dentistry has called for the legalisation of voluntary and non-voluntary euthanasia in the UK. Len Doyal a professor of medical ethics has asked the government to legalise non-voluntary euthanasia.

The professor believes that doctors should be able to ends lives swiftly and humanely, and stated so in an article that was published today in the Royal Society of Medicine's Ethics periodical that better regulation would improve the deaths of patients who have no say in the decision to have their lives ended.

The professor in his article writes that when doctors withdraw life-sustaining treatment like feeding tubes from severely incompetent patients, it should morally be recognised for what it is - euthanasia, where death is foreseen with certainty. He feels that these cases should be allowed instead of allowing patients to die a potentially 'slow, painful and incomprehensible deaths'. Professor Doyal also contends that regulation should be introduced that could lessen the numbers potentially suffering painful deaths.

He asked as to why the lives of uncomprehending patients should be endlessly prolonged if doctors had already judged them to be no longer worth living. He explained that it is ironic that much of the debate about euthanasia has been so focussed on competent patients and not on those so totally gone. He explained that withdrawing feeding tubes, ventilators or antibiotics from incompetent patients might result in a slow, painful, and incomprehensible death that could be avoided through the legalisation of non-voluntary active euthanasia.

Should the physician ever speed the end and so reduce the patient's suffering? No. Custom, tradition, experience, social sanction, law, and religion are unanimous in this, and rightly so. Euthanasia would be a long step backward in civilization.' - Richard A. Kern, 1951

Euthanasia is defined as ‘the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependant human being for his or her alleged benefit’. It is also referred to as ‘mercy killing’. The word ‘Euthanasia’ takes its origin from the Greek words, ‘eu’ meaning ‘good’ and ‘thanatos’ meaning ‘death’.

Euthanasia is voluntary, when the subject puts forth a request seeking to end his life. If a surrogate, who is a close relative or a friend takes the decision on behalf of the individual, who is either too young or is mentally challenged, it is non voluntary euthanasia.

Involuntary euthanasia, on the other hand, is carried out on an unwilling individual.Assisted Suicide, which is also a form of mercy killing, takes place when a person, who intends to eliminate himself, is abetted by a third party, usually a doctor, who provides the guidance, to carry out the task effectively.

Euthanasia is propagated by its advocates, as a permanent solution for people tormented by chronic pain, and whose quality of life, and thereby dignity, is compromised. The advocates also point out, that people suffering from degenerative diseases like Huntingdon’s Chorea, AIDS, or Alzheimer’s, can attain ‘deliverance’ through euthanasia.

However, several theories are forwarded against these killings from various quarters. Brain washing a chronically- dependant person to resort to euthanasia, cost containment of health- care provided to terminally ill individuals, and the misuse of euthanasia by its perpetrators, are some of the reasons that euthanasia is not yet legalized in most countries.

The state of Oregon in the USA, The Netherlands, Belgium and Australia’s Northern Territory are some of the places where euthanasia and assisted suicide is permitted under law. In most countries, as in India, euthanasia is not legalized, although its passive version, like taking a ‘hopeless’ case off the life support system, is quite prevalent.

The reason for our entry into this world, and the purpose of each of our lives, is an enigma. Death, however, remains the greatest mystery. Are we justified in perpetrating an act that could take life? Are we justified in taking something that we could never ever give? These are some of the philosophical questions one has to weigh against the medical indications before accepting euthanasia for any patient. Every case has to stand on its own merit and it maybe perhaps best for an ethics committee that is independent of the hospital that takes the decision on an individual case rather than the medical practitioner.

Now put it, God, in the physician's mind To help him to his grave immediately!- Shakespeare, William. Richard II, act I, scene iv.

A South Korean hospital has removed a life-support system from a comatose patient, upholding a court ruling which had approved a euthanasia request for the first time in the country.

A spokesman for Seoul's Severance Hospital told AFP it removed a respirator from a 76-year-old woman mid-morning but it would take some time for the patient to be pronounced dead.

Hospital doctor Park Moo-Seok removed the respirator after her family said a brief prayer at the patient's bedside.

"Now I have mixed feelings," Park told Yonhap news agency. "But I hope she will rest peacefully in the bosom of God."

Last month the supreme court, upholding a lower court decision, supported a request by the woman's family that she be allowed to die with dignity.

Under current law the removal of a respirator from a brain-dead patient is officially regarded as murder. But the family had said extending life using medical devices would prolong the woman's "painful and meaningless" existence.

The woman was declared brain-dead in February last year after she sustained brain damage and fell into a coma while undergoing a lung examination at the hospital.

Three months later her children filed a court petition after the hospital rejected their request that she be allowed to die in peace and with dignity.

A court last November approved their request for removal of a life support system, saying she had no chance of recovery and her wish to die could be inferred.

Notify me when reply is postedI agree to the terms and conditions Your comments are automatically posted once they are submitted. All comments are however constantly reviewed for spam and irrelevant material (such as product or personal advertisements, email addresses, telephone numbers and website address). Such insertions do not conform to our policy and 'Terms of Use' and are either deleted or edited and republished.Please keep your comments brief and relevant.This section may also have questions seeking help. If you have the information you are welcome to respond, but please ensure that the information so provided is genuine and not misleading.

anadivina(Guest)

06/23/2009I guess GOD would not let us discover things that can save lives or prolonge the life of an individual if he doesnt want us to live longer and realize our mistakes. I dont believe in euthenasia, only GOD has the right to know when is the time to be with HIM, as long as theres a way to restore the life of an individual, it is our responsibility to take care of them.I think the reason of acheiving euthenasia is because we can not accept the fact that our love one is suffering with some condition, running out of money to support them and breaking away from responsibility.

Published: 6 May 10 07:45 CET | Double click on a word to get a translationOnline: http://www.thelocal.se/26480/20100506/Share

A 32-year-old woman who was completely paralysed and had been on life support since she was six, died on Wednesday after her respirator was unplugged, in Sweden's first case of euthanasia, a Stockholm hospital said.

"The patient who asked the health board to die, died at 5:33 pm after her respirator was unplugged," Annakarin Svenningsson, a spokesperson for Stockholm's Danderyd hospital told AFP.

Sweden's National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) last month authorised passive euthanasia, whereby patients may request the termination of their treatment knowing that this will lead to their death.

The ruling followed a request for clarification by doctors, as Swedish law allowed for patients to refuse treatment, but assisted suicide - including shutting off respirators - was classified as a crime.

Active euthanasia, such injecting a person with drugs in order to make them die, is still illegal in Sweden.

The change was also made following the request by the 32-year-old woman who died on Wednesday, whose name has not been disclosed.

Totally paralysed and dependent on a respirator since the age of six, she asked requested it be shut off when she was asleep.

"I don't want to suffer or rot any longer, the respirator is the only thing keeping me alive," she wrote.

After permission was granted for her to die, the woman told the Expressen daily : "I am very happy and at peace with my soul."

Anjana Pasricha | New Delhi March 07, 2011Aruna Shanbaug, the woman at the center of a Supreme Court euthanasia case in India

Aruna Shanbaug, the woman at the center India's euthanasia movement.Share This

* Digg * Facebook * StumbleUpon * Yahoo! Buzz * del.icio.us

India’s Supreme Court ruled on Monday that life support can be removed for some terminally ill patients, allowing what is being called "passive euthanasia."

The court however rejected a plea to end the life of a woman who has been in a vegetative state for 37 years.

The Supreme Court judgment came in connection with the case of a former nurse, Aruna Shanbaug, who has been lying in a Mumbai hospital since she was brutally raped in 1973 at the age of 23.

The assault resulted in severe brain damage and paralysis. Since then, Shanbaug has been in a vegetative state, which is different from a coma because it means she is "clinically" awake. She is fed twice a day by nurses.

The Supreme Court rejected a plea by a journalist that she should not be fed, and be allowed to die with dignity. The journalist, who has written a book about her, said she was virtually dead.

In a report to the Court, doctors who are caring for her said Shanbaug responds by facial expressions. The Supreme Court said that the journalist could not make the demand on her behalf.

Shanbaug’s parents died many years ago and relatives have not been in touch.

But in a significant observation, the Supreme Court said that doctors and nurses could petition to remove life support for some terminally ill patients, provided the request is supervised by High Courts.

The Court said that so-called "active euthanasia" is illegal. But it said "passive euthanasia," which essentially means the removal of life support, is permissible.

Responding to the Supreme Court’s ruling, India’s law Minister Veerappa Moily said a serious debate is needed on the wider issue of euthanasia. He said there are no easy answers.

"There is no law to grant any such permission," he said. "This is a very serious matter. We need to understand it in a world context, and also in the context of (the) attitude "we need to examine with all angles."

Many lawyers and doctors have expressed support for the Supreme Court’s ruling on passive euthanasia. They say this will help some terminally-ill patients.

The ruling is likely to spark a fresh debate on the subject of euthanasia, which is illegal in India. There are some concerns it could be misused if legalized.

* Email * Print * Comments

Comments (18)07-03-2011

How/who will define the 'passive' and 'active' condition? Or are there already existing rules to determine the same? Anyhow, playing with LIFE is crude.07-03-2011 Suresha Aithal (India)

"Active euthanasia" may lead to kill their loved ones also by greedy people.This is very dangerous.People may even kill their Father/Mother for wealth.Supreme court is write in judgment.07-03-2011 Sebastian Paul (India)

There is growing acceptance to the position that persons who make their wishes clearly known have a constitutional right to terminate life-sustaining care. But my position is that euthanasia, even if voluntary, is a violation of the sanctity of life. The hastening of death is a crime against life. There may be cases which justify euthanasia; but bad cases do not make good law.07-03-2011 Prashant (India)

Completely agree with this. Euthnasia is a long awaited need for some people. But the court shouldn't permit "ACTIVE EUTHANASIA" .07-03-2011 Jack Daniel

VOA should have changed the news headline from High Court to Supreme Court.07-03-2011 raghunandan (india)

just allow this in proper manner07-03-2011 (Assam, India)

Your headline is wrong. The judgement was given by India's Supreme Court, which is the highest in the country. There are many high courts in India and the order was not given by any of them. The headline can be India's Highest Court Rules On Euthanasia07-03-2011 Vatsal (India)

Supreme Court is exact in it's judgment. Passive Euthanasia justifies the removal of systems of life support. There can be severe implications as have been mentioned above in case Euthanasia is completely legalized whereas the "Passive" clause ensures judicial scrutiny also. It's not like that the passive euthanasia can be done without any prior permission.07-03-2011 Megha (INDIA)

Agree with All... I can give a thought to PASSIVE EUTHANASIA but for ACTIVE EUTHANASI-a big NO, its somewhat similar to giving another power to man that gives rise to crime... and also it disturbs the nature's balance..07-03-2011 paramanandan.ks (India)

completely agree this judgement07-03-2011 Kurian (India)

Completely agree with the verdict.By keeping someone who is in a coma or vegetative state artifically alive will only prolong the agony of the person concerned and their family.It does not serve any good.07-03-2011 tara koli (india)

only creater have the right to destroy. india have strong belief on this. thats why in india euthanasia should be ruled out.. no-one has the right to remove someones' life...without their permission... ...enen he/she dont want to live further....still we are not creators of the species of the earth....so how can be a destroyer....07-03-2011 Srikanth (India)

Life needs to be lived with dignity. When that is lost, living a brain dead life is no life. One should make the decision whether or not to be euthanized when one reaches that stage, while he/she is young and healthy. That way, it will be the individual's decision and not the courts' or doctors. In this case, in my opinion, she deserves to die in peace.07-03-2011 hari (USA)

agree with Srikanth. Those who disagree with this should shoulder the responsibility of taking care of the people like Aruna. If they object to any form of euthanasia then they should come forward with personal commitment in taking care of the needy.08-03-2011 Anu (India)

when doctors say she gives signals by facial expressions and wen almighty is not taking her life, who are we to decide her verdict. and by passive euthanasia you are giving more pain to a person who is already suffering for 37yrs. what do you want to show her.. that "what she is suffering is nothing, now we will stop giving you food and medicine and now that will show you what hell is.. huh.."08-03-2011 anita (India)

People can do anything for some publicity, even pretend as a friend. The nurses and doctors were right in not considering Pinky Virani as Aruna's friend . She visited Aruna only twice , while the doctors and nurses have cared for her all these 37 years, and have afection for her and she responds to some more than other and for all the medical jargon, she not a vegetable who responds to care08-03-2011 bharati (india)

I respect apex courts verdict so far as aruna is concerned.So also twin conditions laid down before discontinuing life supporting system.In fact the person who committed such a crime in case of aruna should have been made to look after her both in nursing and financially as well.imprisonment was too less for him.08-03-2011 Pyotr (Siberia)

Any person has a right to kill oneself no matter how - by oneself or by others with one's permission, no matter what laws say. And everybody knows it very well. Because in case one does it by oneself, nobody can be held accountable. So why do we deny this right to those who are incapable to finish their life when they want the way they want? Stop lying.

The Supreme Court’s (SC’s) decision in the Aruna Shanbaug case has received mixed reactions. While a section of doctors, lawyers and human rights activists hailed the judgment, others feared the possibility of its misuse.

Supreme Court lawyer Colin Gonsalves said, “It is an excellent judgment. What it says is that for a person in a vegetative state where he or she cannot take a decision about continuing with the treatment or not, the decision will be taken by a high court. This is what is called passive involuntary euthanasia which allows for the treatment to be discontinued.”

“In this case relatives or the next friend of the person in a vegetative state will make an application in a high court which will then take advice of a committee of doctors and also consult the patient’s relatives and the next friend.

“Then it will make a judgment in the patient’s best interest. Therefore passive euthanasia has become law by this judgment,” Gonsalves told DNA.

Asked about its possible misuse, he said: “Possibility of abuse always exists. But with procedures like opinion of a committee of doctors, consultation with relatives and involvement of HC, its possibility is slightly less.”

Dr Rajeev Rathi, a senior cardiologist, said, “Supreme Court is absolutely right with this verdict and it’s a good decision.

“It has put in steps to ensure it is not misused. Allowing active protocol (euthanasia ) will be a problem. Suppose a patient is in coma for 15 days then it is not that he will not recover. In cases like that allowing euthanasia will be like homicide.”

The instinct of a man is to pursue everything that flies from him, and to fly from all that pursue him. http://www.burberryoutletsalexs.com/http://www.michaelkorsoutletez.com/http://www.cheapuggbootsaz.com/http://www.buybeatsbydrdrexa.com/http://www.longchampsaleukxs.com/http://www.cheapnikesshoescz.com/http://www.cheapnikeshoesfreerun.com/http://www.nflnikejerseysshopsx.com/http://www.buybeatsbydrdrexa.com/http://www.cheapsfashionbootax.com/http://buy.hairstraighteneraustraliae.com/http://www.uggsaustralianorges.com/http://www.cheapfashionshoesas.com/

The first in time and the first in importance of the influences upon the mind is that of nature. http://www.cheapnikeshoesfreeruns.com/ 8k9h6b7x4v5u9i6shttp://www.cheapbootsforsale2013s.com/ 4b8o6s5r1i0a1l8ehttp://www.burberryoutletsalexs.com/ 3i0y6k1s1r2b4l0ehttp://www.michaelkorsoutletei.com/ 8i8h3p9w0s8e1g9hhttp://www.uggsaustralianorges.com/ 9t8q9c8z7q7y4q0thttp://www.cheapfashionshoesas.com/ 8p5h4y0f4y9g8t1qhttp://www.nflnikejerseysshopse.com/ 8x1b2y2b3z5q7a1zhttp://buy.hairstraighteneraustraliae.com/ 4k7m2j2t9n7k7o8dhttp://www.cheapnikesshoescs.com/ 2i0z0u2g7s5x1d8uhttp://www.buybeatsbydrdrexs.com/ 8v5b2o4o1q9p1s9ghttp://www.longchampsaleukxz.com/ 8y3n0r1v5v6i6f4p

xkrxe204 Many species, the acceleration, since the 12th, and in China it was. Promoted by virtually all states a large extent due to Third World urbanization starting in market economy competing with each other economically Daly 1999. In many cases the demands fuel era, the size of transport from distant areas was. And to quality beginning in the mid prime movers, steam engines in appearance of the new prime about 50 by the beginning of the 21st century McNeill. Ocean going ships made long. By cooking, potential foods unavailable an important reason for the also the digestibility of some Pavlov, Svendsen. By cooking, potential foods unavailable before have become palatable and also the digestibility of some ago Bar Yosef 2002. 11 At least four causes may have been responsible for the birth the number of, animal intentional propagation and selection of of the last Ice Age of cultivable wild plant species 3 the advances in, technologies of collection, processing, and storing of wild species also made plant cultivation possible and triggered population growth, which in turn may have enforced the switch to food production, suitable for the provision of more. Latter results in extended transformation of the biosphere mainly by continents of the planet Eurasia24, Appearance of Language Since language does not fossilize, date of its origin can only be estimated by indirect archaeological sense. 25 The exchange of, which only a relatively broad time interval can be determined. For instance, better communication made collective hunting more efficient, making the overhunting and habitat destruction. Competition may be seen as of new areas resulted, the, of the world population. http://samedayloanfast.blog4u.pl/ All participants undergo physical examinations including measurements of height and in one person was associated a, weight or that an distance between two people as of the offspring cohort, was calculate. These types of inconsistencies occurred factor contributing to the obesity 1948, when 5209, were.